case articles

Lian Li's D8000 is also on the purposely huge HPTX form factor. As a point of reference, a standard ATX mid-tower supporting seven expansion slots generally has a 60L capacity while the big Cubitek HPTX-ICE and Lian Li PC-V2120 tout capacities of 79L and 88L.

With a capacity of 145L, the D8000 shatters that paradigm, offering 140% more room than a standard ATX case, which makes sense since the D8000 is essentially two full tower cases fused together.

Before last year, no In Win cases really caught our attention. That changed when we spotted the open-air X-Frame midway through 2012. Following the X-Frame's success, In Win introduced the H-Frame -- a similarly unique chassis with a feature list that includes eleven diamond-cut aluminum plates.

In Win's latest open-air chassis has to be their finest creation yet. The D-Frame is a limited edition aluminum pipe and tempered glass case that is unique and equally pricey. DIY'ers will be pleased nonetheless.

If Computex is anything like CES, you can spend hours sifting through a myriad of run-of-the-mill beige boxes (figuratively speaking, of course) before you stumble upon something innovative or just plain different. To that end, descriptive words like these are…

Although there are some solid small form factor cases available, none of them are perfect -- at least not if you're Wahaha360 and Necere from HardOCP's forum. Disappointed by popular enclosures such as the SilverStone SG05, the guys teamed up last year to design their...

Thermaltake has updated its Chaser series with a new Tron-inspired mid-tower aimed at gamers and enthusiasts. Said to exude an "e-sports appearance," the Chaser A31's aesthetics have been greatly tamed over the Chaser MK-1's hyper-aggressive looks by using smoother surfaces…

Following the success of 2008's HAF 932 chassis, Cooler Master didn't waste any time adapting its High Air Flow design to various other form factors and price points -- many of which we've covered in depth. Along with its larger options, the company offers three mid-towers: the $50 HAF 912, $100 HAF 922 and $130 HAF XM.

While the cost of these cases varies significantly, they're all fairly similar in terms of stature in that their tall, rectangular profile resembles most other mid-towers. Mixing things up, Cooler Master's latest mid-size enclosure, the HAF XB, breaks the conventional mold with boxier dimensions -- in fact, the company describes it as a "LAN box".

Since its unveiling at Computex 2009, the Obsidian Series 800D has served as the mac daddy of Corsair's enthusiast chassis. After focusing on delivering more affordable variants over the last two and a half years, the company is prepared to trump its venerable flagship with...

Manufactured and marketed by Thermaltake, the Level 10 was actually designed by BMW Group DesignworksUSA, a subsidiary of the BMW Group. In addition to engineering yachts, trains, aircraft, lifestyle and IT products, the three studios in Munich, California and Singapore…

Released in late 2008, the original Silverstone Raven RV01 quickly caught my attention because of its strange orientation that pointed the motherboard upward at a 90-degree angle, so the "rear" I/O panel was placed on top of the enclosure instead of behind.
The Raven 2 Evolution has a more efficient design, it is 24% skinner and 18% shorter than the RV01. The smaller dimensions have also allowed Silverstone to shed 17% of the overall weight. The new changes make for a very interesting computer case, so let's dive in for a closer look...

Cooler Master recently launched yet another enthusiast-friendly CM Storm chassis, the Scout 2. Despite its relatively low $90 price tag, the Scout 2 has plenty to offer, including ergonomic steel-reinforced carrying handles, USB 3.0 support and room for up to two SSDs, nine fans and any graphics card around.

Although we reviewed several Cooler Master enclosures in 2012, it's been a year since we laid hands on a new CM Storm-branded case, so it'll be interesting to see how the company's latest offering holds up in the increasingly competitive sub-$100 territory.

From the perspective of folks who cover tech-related happenings, this is always a polarizing time of year. The final weeks of December are generally void of product announcements, yet only two weeks later, we're bombarded with new gadgets at CES.

Before we move on to the latest and greatest devices of 2013, we figure it's worth revisiting some of 2012's most popular devices as suggested by our Product Finder, which includes reviews by hundreds of seasoned specialists across the Web. We've included 59 products across 14 categories along with their aggregate review score and a brief commentary that explains why they're special.

Gamers tend to take a lot of pride in building their own rigs, but it's generally not enough to have top-notch performance without the looks to match. Motherboards, for instance, have transformed from generic green slabs to works of art. Interestingly, it seems increasingly common to find aggressive military styling among high-end motherboards. Despite the prevalence of military-themed motherboards, enthusiasts haven't had a whole lot of stock options for matching cases.

Hoping to fill that void, Corsair updated its Vengeance gaming lineup earlier this year with the C70 series which comes in Military Green. Thermaltake also launched the Level 10 GT Battle Edition with the same olive drab paint job and a few nifty details that are well worth a look if Army-themed gear is your thing.

Thermaltake has unveiled a new compact enclosure with features specifically geared toward HTPC-like applications. The SD101 may not be able to handle the same breadth of enthusiast hardware as cases like Cooler Master's recently released HAF XB, but at only…

Corsair has added a fresh entry to the growing list of low-cost, no-nonsense enthusiast chassis available today, unveiling its new Carbide Series 200R. The $59 mid-tower enclosure serves as a nice counterpart to Cooler Master's venerable HAF 912, offering a…

Today New Zealand's Prime Minister John Key issued an apology to Kim DotCom for failing to protect him against illegal surveillance performed by NZ authorities. DotCom is the brains behind the long defunct MegaUpload, a file sharing service shut down…

Every now and again, a manufacturer unveils a truly special and unique chassis that stands out among the crowd in some way or another. I’ve been doing hardware and peripheral reviews for over a decade and have seen my fair…

A New York State Supreme Court judge ordered Twitter to hand over the account information of Occupy Wall Street protester Malcolm Harris, Bloomberg reports. Twitter has until September 15 to comply with the court order to face an undisclosed fine…

The Silencio 650 not only resembles a cleaner version of Cooler Master's more aggressive HAF series, but it touts many attractive features, chief among which is sound absorbing foam mats and specially designed air vents to minimize noise while maintaining low operating temps.

The Silencio's ability to muffle high-end hardware is undoubtedly its key selling point, but there's plenty more to see here. Other noteworthy features include a "DualBoot HDD Switch" for toggling between OSes, a fan speed controller, a memory card reader, 1amp USB 3.0 ports for charging smartphones and tablets, as well as X-Dock, Cooler Master's hot-swappable 2.5"/3.5" HDD/SSD drive bay.

Cooler Master has unveiled an affordable case that combines the internal functionality of an enthusiast chassis with the diminutive footprint of a home theater PC. Priced at only $50, the Elite 120 Advanced can house full-size graphics cards while measuring…

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few months, you’ve no doubt seen the Cooler Master Cosmos II either online or at your local hardware retailer or LAN party. Cooler Master showcased their 'Ultra Tower' at this year's CES and we've been anxious to get it on the test bench ever since to see if it lives up to the hype.

With support for up to 13 hard drives and a total weight of nearly 50 pounds without any hardware installed, this is probably the largest case I've ever worked with in over 10 years of reviewing computer hardware.

Intel has announced what it considers to be a breakthrough in structural design for Ultrabooks and possibly other portables. The chip maker claims it has engineered a plastic chassis which rivals the solid aluminum unibody case designs made popular by Apple --…

Cubitek is a relative newcomer to the chassis industry, but that's not stopping it from challenging the biggest names in the business -- including veteran Lian Li. Last month, the company unveiled its latest ICE series with five premium models spanning everything from Mini-ITX to HPTX.

All of the ICE series chassis feature a 2.5mm aluminum construction and Cubitek says this makes them stronger than standard aluminum cases while maintaining a thin and light figure. The largest model, the Cubitek HPTX-ICE, stands 559mm (22") tall and 613mm (24") long, weighing 19.6lbs (8.9kg) when empty.

I'm a huge fan of trying to make my desktop computer as silent as possible, mostly so that it doesn't disturb me in a silent room or disrupt whatever media I may be enjoying. Naturally, I was excited to hear…

Better known for its automobiles, Nissan has shifted gears to the realm of electronics accessories with a new scratchproof iPhone case. More accurately, the cover is susceptible to scratches, but it can automatically "heal" them courtesy of a special paint…

Cooler Master has unveiled the latest iteration of its venerable Cosmos series, marking the first true successor to 2007's Cosmos 1000 chassis. The Cosmos II literally brings the series to new heights, measuring approximately five inches taller than its predecessor…